Sunday Morning

After our first gorgeous sunny and warm day yesterday we woke up to drizzly rain this morning. I am sure there are more nice days to come, but that was just too much of a tease!

Last week was another busy week. I experimented with a new knit cowl pattern and although it didn't come out quite right, I think I know how to change it up so it will work. I'm rather excited about it, but that won't be ready for posting for a few weeks. I'm also working on an afgahn for my son's new appartment. I'm only about a quarter of the way done with that and hope to finish it up quickly.

My newest listing this week include:

Basic Wool Bowl in a lovely oatmeal


A bright blue knit cell phone cozy:


A pretty pink felted flower hair pony:


A brown felted wool coffee cozy:


A very cute lime green felted wool bowl:


And a bright red knit wool wine bottle cozy


I hope you will stop by etsy and artfire and browse around a bit!

Hooker Spotlight ~ warmandsoft

Today's Hooker Spotlight features warmandsoft ~ A fantastic shop full of crocheted items. My favorites are the shawls!


We are three partners in this shop!
My sister-in-law (Hatice) and I (Meltem) started this shop. My sister-in-law - Hatice is loving knitting and crocheted. Our friend Hulya with her brooches to join us. We are selling handmade warm and soft scarves, shawls, hats, mittens, gloves and great brooches in this shop. We are adding new items day by day.









Hopefully you will stop in this shop!

Sunday Morning

As snow is slowing falling and the family is sleeping in I am enjoying this cup of coffee way too much!

It has been a very busy week for me and my head is finally not spinning quite so much!

Mom had her second cataract surgery on Tuesday and all went well. She has the doctors ok to drive again, so watch out Central NY!! I am glad she is now mobile and seeing the world again. My computer needed to go to the hospital as well, but now I am running full force and catching up on photographing and listing some new items. My son moved into his appartment yesterday, so we had a full day of cleaning, moving and stocking up his pantry. I am sure he will be happy in his cute little appartment.

While we were driving around town getting my son settled, I knit this gorgeous wool / silk blend scarfette. It is really soft and comfy! I love the way it looks in the back...




Visit me on etsy and artfire

Electronic Cozies

I am thrilled to show you these cute gadget cozies!

I had a bad habit of just throwing my cell phone in my bag. It would sink to the bottom and get lost. When it rang, I couldn't find the darn thing and more times than not, I missed the call ~ simply because I couldn't find my phone in time. Not to mention how it got scratched!

So I knit up a cozy and tried it for a week. What a difference! The cozy is knit to fit snuggly around the phone and at the same time, slips out smoothly to enable me to answer the call quickly. There are no buttons or snaps to fuss with.


Once I got the sizing right, I knit up 4 of them in orange, yellow, blue and green. When my 19 year old daughter saw them, she had to have her pick of colors (she chose green). She loves it too! She was in the habit of dropping her phone just anywhere and had to call herself to locate her phone (Ackk... like mother, like daughter!!) Now, it is so easy to spot and she never 'looses' her phone any more.


I am offering these for $8 each and will be adding them to my shops regularly if they are popular. And don't forget - my Welcome Spring Sale is going on throughout the weekend and 20% applies to everything ~ Including these! Let me know what colors you would like! Check out my etsy and artfire shops for new ones!

Welcome Spring!!

Today is the first day of Spring and it has been a very long winter!! I can't wait for my tulips, daffidols, lilacs and lilies to start blooming. I've already bought vegetable seeds and hope to have a great garden this summer.

In celebration, I am running a sale in my etsy shop now through Sunday night to welcome spring. Take 20% off every item and FREE US shipping. I will send your refund back to you through PayPal after your purchase. Just mention "Welcome Spring" in note to seller.

Also ~ Check out my Clearance Corner for huge marked down prices!

Meanwhile, enjoy these flowers until the real ones bloom ~~










Come on in ... Valerie's Gallery

Sunday Morning

Spring IS coming! We are starting to get to the 40 degree range here and the sun is shinning today. After a long winter, it is so nice to see and feel the sun!

I have quite a few new goodies for you this week including some brand new designs and items. Feel free to leave feedback comments on what you think of them!

I am having a ball making these felted coffee cup cozies. My newest is in a beautiful lavender:


I added a new pair of children's felted slippers in a sweet pink for your little princess:

This cable knit can be used as a choker or headband. I think it is really sweet, but would love to hear what you think:


Two new wine bottle cozies are added to the shop - one in classic cables and one in a rib pattern



And this felted bowl is sure to be my personal favorite. It really makes me think of summer time!


Please visit me on etsy, shophandmade and artfire!

Artfire Fiber Artist of the Week ~~ The Little Red Hen

Oh my gosh!! I just fell in love with this shop on Artfire...


The Little Red Hen is one SERIOUS needle felter! Her work is absolutely gorgeous. Now, you may say that I am partial as I am a felter too, but her work is in a totally different league.. not to mention a different method as well. I have tried needle felting and know that it is not a simple craft. I've managed to do a heart or flower or something simple. The Little Red Hen is a definately a master. Just check these out:


Shandy is the most darling little green panda. He has quite a taste for pie which is evident in his paunchy belly. He is a quiet little fellow but he can be very amusing and he is always a good listener. Being a green panda has always brought Shandy a lot of attention and he just wants to be a normal bear.



King Laramy is a distinguished older gent who has reigned supreme for many years. The only problem is that in his advancing years he has gotten a bit forgetful and lost a few of his marbles. The palace staff has safely hidden away his jewel encrusted crown and replaced it with a less precious one since he tends to lose things. Still, he holds his shaggy head high and carries his favorite scepter. He loves greeting the crowds outside his palace gates with a bellowing roar which is still as frightful as ever. He never misses his daily cricket match though sometimes he forgets which team he is cheering on.



Roselle has always dreamed of being a prima ballerina and she isn't one to let her Rubinesque figure stop her. She's going to make it into the spotlight and then celebrate with a giant slice of cheesecake!



Visit TheLittleRedHen on Artfire to see more fabulous work!

Wine Bag - Dandelion Wine

I couldn't resist showing this bag. I love the color combination and think it would be great for a summer time picnic!




I'm already working on a more 'manly' version in forest green. Keep checking back on etsy and artfire for new works ♥♥♥

Hooker Spotlight ~ Le ChatCrochet

As I was browsing around I came across this fun shop and realized she was a sister hooker! I love the variety in her shop and her unique and clever designs.



Here is a snippet from her shop bio:

"Im a quarter Swiss, quarter German and half Dutch girl born and raised in the Netherlands and have shared already more than half of my life with a French boy. I often long to see mountains, crave foreign food and couldn't stand to live in the 'narrow' countryside anymore. But yet I feel firmly rooted in the Dutch culture. Tulips are my favourite flowers and I'm proud of our sobriety. Frugality is a virtue in the flat lands where I grew up. Since I was a child I've learned to craft with scrap, leftovers and reused materials to save money. Now with the necessity to save our Earth reuse has a gotten new dimension. I'm proud to present you with Dutch design made exclusively with materials that were destined to have ended in the landfill.






I'm glad there is a lot of recycling and upcycling going on on Etsy and proud to be among such artists and sellers! Yet I still see a lot of yarn artists who buy new yarn for their creations where the materials are literally on the street. With all due respect I hope to open their mind a bit if they happen to stumble upon this shop. I hope to surprise the unsuspecting visitor who was just looking for a crocheted item with the beauty of reused yarn. If any other recycling yarn artist reads this please contact me, I would love to link up with you!!!"



Stop by her shop and see more great work!

New This Week ~~

Well, I am a day late on my New This Week posting. This past week has been extemely busy with Mom having her cataract surgery. She's doing great and can't wait for the second eye to get done!

Here is what I was able to list this week in my shops ~~ I hope you like them!

More coffee cozies!!


This sweet book cover is perfect for a raining day pick me up.. snuggle with a cup of java and and a good book.. What can be more soothing?


This Creme de Mint felted bowl is perfect for all your little whatnots..


And how about these sweet toddler slippers? Your little guy will be jumping around just like a grasshopper with these!


Have a great Monday, and don't forget to visit me on etsy, shophandmade and artfire!

Knit Wine Bottle Gift Bag

I've added a new product to my stores and couldn't be more excited!



I do believe that I made a lovely wine bottle cozy. After 4 failed attempts on the perfect stitching formula, I finally got it right. This one is knit with a plum and light lavender and I've named it Huckleberry Heather. I wonder if there is a Huckleberry Wine??? Probably not.. but it sure sounds fun! I've already started another one in a bright sunny yellow that I will name Dandelion Wine...

This cozy is perfect for dressing up the bottle for housewarming / hostess gifts or serving your drinks during a special occasion. I left the top of the bag shorter than the bottle top so the cozy can remain on the bottle while pouring to avoid spills or drips on the bag.

I just think it's great and hope you will too! Let me know what colors you would like to see and I'll probably make some as I am just having too much fun with these.

Visit me on etsy, shophandmade and artfire.

Coffee Cozies ~~

Last week my 19 year old daughter got a new car... well, a used new car, but her first car that she bought on her own, complete with a small car payment. Of course she had to take me for a ride as she is very proud. It is a Saturn in a very pretty blue.

We stopped at the local quickie store and bought a cup of coffee and went on our way to enjoy a ride in the country on a sunny but cold day. Her car is great, but really, the cup holders in this particular model are not coffee-to-go friendly, so I had to hold my coffee the entire way. I never really understood the need for a coffee cozy until that day. The cup gets hot and it is very hard to enjoy your java when your fingers are hot!

So, when we got home, I knit this coffee cozy from 100% wool and put it through the felting process. I chose a pretty blue that matches her car as our ride was the inspiration for this creation. It came out to be a perfect fit and I have more to come.. in styles fit for guys and gals, so be on the look out for more.

Of course, if you would like one in a particular color or design, just contact me through etsy or artfire and I will be happy to make one just for you!

Sunday Morning

March has come and although it is a beautiful Sunday morning, it is still very cold. These pictures were taken just today and I think the snow can just go away till next December.




New in my shop this week~~~

Knit Wool Classic Cable Scarflette ~ Black



Knit Felted Wool Bangles ~ Charcoal Collection



Crocheted Felted Wool Pins and Hair Ponies:





Visit me on etsy, shophandmade and artfire